Council Recap: Dom Nizza's Anecdotes and Journalist's Public Address Make For Strange Meeting

The village council had a quick public meeting on Wednesday night, though it was most certainly one of the stranger meetings in memory.

Patch commenter extraordinaire Dominick Nizza was presented with an award for his role in Dad's Night (along with two other gentlemen) and also addressed the council, which he said he does annually.

Among the points Nizza drove home? That he was quite the talk around the court circuit when a female judge he clerked for became pregnant; that he'll be having a Valentine's Day dinner with Councilwoman Bernadette Walsh (she did not confirm); and in addition, the 89-year-old said he had a root canal done on Wednesday. He also mentioned he still would like to change Graydon Pool.

"The good news is I made it," he told the council. "The bad news is I'm still here." He told the council they know what it means.

In another odd turn, John Koster, longtime reporter for The Villadom Times (who covers village news), addressed the village council as a "customer of Ridgewood Water" and not a resident of Ridgewood (he lives in Glen Rock). He told the council that he took objection to parts of Read Across America Day, which the council read as a proclamation and is to be celebrated March 2. In Koster's view, Dr. Seuss should not be celebrated.

Koster said Theodore Seuss Geisel, better known as Dr. Suess, supported the internment of Japanese prisoners in WWII among other politically controversial views. Reporters very rarely address governing bodies during public commenting sections.

Resident Leonard Eisen, a fixture at council meetings, said he doesn't believe it would be wise for the state to do away with publishing legal notices in newspapers (The Record and The Ridgewood News for Ridgewood), citing the lack of security hosting it on the internet would bring.

Getting down to business, the village introduced a number of ordinances such as the ; the to switch over to radio-based meter-reading technology; changes to Graydon's s; an increase to day camp fees; and a appropriation for an energy audit.

The village also approved an ordinance to amend Village Hall rental rates and on consent agenda approved a contract for paving materials from the county (the village has been cold patching recently) as well as rock salt for $62.88 a ton.

Ordinance 3276–which would have designated a parking meter zone along a section of Franklin Avenue–was defeated and will be re-drafted for a future meeting. Mayor Keith Killion said that Village Engineer Chris Rutishauser needs to do additional work before the council can vote on it.

The council also appointed Joel Toricelli to the Zoning Board of Adjustment for a term set to expire in June of 2011, along with two alternates. Kathleen Marshall was appointed to the Parks, Recreation, and Conservation Board for a term expiring at the end of 2011.